Vaibhav Verma Seeks Apex Court’s Intervention On Naveen’s Coal Block Allocation

Newdelhi:26/3/19: Alleged improprieties in coal block allocation dating back to more than two decades has returned to bother Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik in the wake of a impleadment application filed in the Supreme Court yesterday.

BJD however dismissed the alleged irregularities and said some vested interests are playing dirty game in view of the upcoming with general elections.

As per the petition of one Vaibhav Verma, MS Central collieries Co Ltd & Ors (Nagpur) was awarded the Takli-Jena-Bellora coalfield in Maharashtra in 1998, even before its registration. Naveen Patnaik was the then Union Minister of Mines thus making his role questionable, according to report by a news agency.

Verma’s petition contended that Patnaik was subjected to interrogation by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on November 25, 2017, in connection with a coal block allocation case.

“That after interrogation of Patnaik, there is no reason for delay; however as evident, again there is a delay of almost two years since his interrogation and the CBI is yet to complete its investigation and has failed to take any concrete steps despite the fact that Supreme Court is monitoring the coal block cases.”, the petition stated as per the news agency report.

Reacting to impleadment application, BJD MP Pinaki Mishra told the news agency, “It’s a contemptible issue. The issue is 21 years old. It relates to a time when Naveen Patnaik was holding additional charge of Coal Ministry for about a couple of months only.”